Significance of National Day of Egypt and relations with Uganda

By Mai Taha Khalil

Sixty five years ago, on July 23, 1952, a group of young enthusiastic Egyptian officers, decided to answer the outcry of millions of frustrated Egyptians and to fulfill their aspirations for an Independent Egypt not only from foreign colonial powers but also ridding it from its corrupt rulers. On that particular day, the fate of Egypt has irreversibly changed. It became a Republic and a revolutionary process of transformation was unleashed to free and modernise Egypt with the aims of achieving equality, development and democracy. Of course, all revolutions are not exempted from harsh criticism. One can claim though that the most important achievement of our revolution is, apart from gaining national independence, that it has accelerated social mobility with a pace unprecedented in Egyptian modern history. Egypt no longer became an exclusive club for the rich and mighty to enjoy its wealth. The revolution enabled the majority of Egyptians who were exploited by a few elite to enjoy upward mobility through opportunities in education, health and addressing long-standing historical inequalities.

The leaders of our revolution in mid last century, felt they had an obligation, not just towards their people in Egypt but also towards their oppressed brothers and sisters across the globe particularly in Africa, its natural geographical and cultural sphere. During the era of President Gamal Abdulnasser, Egypt became not only the home of African freedom fighters, but also extended its support everywhere, figures like Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Nkrumah of Ghana, Ben Bella of Algeria and Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, among many others, were all part of the struggle of Egyptians and their revolution.

I consider myself fortunate, because I got the chance to meet some of those brave African spirits, here in Uganda, to name one of many, Honorable Ali Kivejinja, second deputy prime minister. Meeting him is always a rich experience. As he narrates his life story and his struggle as an "agitator' against foreign powers, he also narrates the story of my country and how its revolution intertwined with the history of Uganda and that of Africa in its quest for freedom and justice.

Egypt is a steadfast defender of Africa's interests at the global level. That is why it sought its current membership of the United Nations Security council during the period 2016/2017. Egypt will continue to play that role even beyond its tenure in the Security Council; advocating at every corner the priorities of the continent.

President Abdulfattah ElSisi, was elected in 2014. Since he assumed office, he has eagerly commenced a reform path that entailed major changes in our policies. One important reform is re-directing the focus of our foreign policy towards its natural habitat, Africa. He builds on the tradition and the basis the founding fathers of our revolution have started more than 60 years ago. Over the past few years, he has made numerable visits to African countries to further deepen and strengthen the ties with our brothers and sisters in the continent.

The first bilateral visit to an African country made by President ElSisi was to Uganda on December 18, 2016. Again, in less than six months, another visit was made by the Egyptian President to Uganda upon the invitation of his brother President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for the Nile Basin Summit. The two visits in such a short period show the growing importance and development to the relations between the two countries,

His Excellency president Museveni says, describing the relation between the two countries; that there is an umbilical cord that eternally ties Egypt and Uganda. It starts at Jinja, where the Source of the Nile lies and ends at Alexandria, where the river ends at the Mediterranean Sea. Powerful and captivating analogy from President Museveni that encapsulates in few words the unbreakable ties between the two countries and the two people. 

President ElSisi has set three goals to further develop the relations between Egypt and Uganda and they also constitute the guidelines for my work here:

· The first goal, is to create a solid and lasting strategic partnership between the two countries through a continuous dialogue and co-ordination on global and regional issues. As a result of President ElSisi' visit, we are having an increasing number of high level delegations from both countries visiting to put in place a framework for co-operation in fields such as agriculture, irrigation, tourism and many others.

· The second goal is to work closely together on critical regional and international issues such as combating terrorism and water security. We have collaborated closely with Uganda on issues like the conflict in South Sudan, instability in the great lake region, exchanging critical information on security issues in an attempt to counter radicalism.

President ElSisi attended the recently concluded Nile Basin Summit at Entebbe last month, which we consider as ushering a new beginning for the leaders of the region to converge on means of preserving the river that binds us all together and to maximise our joint benefits from it and to do no harm to each other.

· The third goal is to develop bilateral relations particularly in the areas of development, trade and investment. I am happy to see recently, more and more Egyptian companies opening and expanding in Uganda and exploiting the enormous opportunities that the Pearl of Africa offers. We are still committed to working with Uganda providing whatever support we can offer to implementing developmental projects based on a true spirit of partnership and solidarity. For example, the Egyptian government offered a grant for a project to combat floods in Kasese that we will be doing its groundbreaking launch early next month. We are also digging boreholes in Kayunga, Kamuli, Mbale, luwero, Apa, Soroti, Rakai and I am pushing my government to do many more.

Moreover, in less than two years, we managed to train over 200 Ugandan brothers and sisters in Egypt in different fields such as Police, military, energy, irrigation, environment, pharmaceuticals, engineering, medicine, media and education. Some of these programmes were catered just for Ugandans. I always say that Egypt is not a rich country, however, we are rich in experience. Challenges are the same and solutions may not be very far from home. Egypt will always be the next door neighbour that you will find practical and relevant solutions to the challenges you face.

This being my very first National Day I celebrate as an Ambassador of my country abroad, it will always remain a very special occasion dear to my heart. I came to Uganda with BIG DREAMS in advancing our ties and with the help and co-operation I am receiving from Ugandans, I hope I can achieve them.

The writer is the Ambassador of Egypt to Uganda